Christa steele

A highly respected financial and governance expert, Christa brings extensive leadership experience, having twice served as CEO and held positions on twelve boards. Her board service includes roles as Board Chair, Audit Committee Chair, and Compensation Committee Chair. 

In early 2022, Christa was appointed interim CEO for Balco Holdings, Inc. In this capacity, she oversaw all day-to-day financial, regulatory, operational, legal, and risk matters for the company until the successful division and dissolution of its holding company assets at the end of 2022. Prior to this, she served as an Independent Board Director since 2020. Balco Holdings encompassed Bay Alarm, Bay Alarm Medical, and Balco Properties, a family-owned enterprise with over 1200 employees and revenues exceeding $290 million throughout its 75-year history. Previously, Christa was President and CEO of Mechanics Bank from 2013 to 2015. During her tenure, she achieved a 43% improvement in core earnings within a single year, doubled the bank's stock price in less than two years, and successfully led its sale at a premium in 2015.

Christa's accomplishments have earned her significant recognition. In 2023, she was honored as one of the Top 100 Board Directors in the U.S. by the National Association of Corporate Directors. The San Francisco Business Times twice named her one of "The Most Influential Women in Bay Area Business" in 2022 and 2015, and Private Company Director Magazine recognized her as a "North America Top 50 Private Directors to Watch" in 2019.

Current Board Roles:

• The Doctors Company (Napa, CA): Audit, Finance and Risk Committees. The Doctors Company is the largest physician-owned medical malpractice insurer in the U.S.
• Velocity HoldCo LLC (Nashville, TN): Audit, Finance and Risk Committees. Velocity HoldCo owns Velocity Risk Underwriters LLC, Velocity Specialty Insurance Company, and Velocity Claims LLC and is an Oaktree Capital portfolio company. Velocity underwrites and insures catastrophic risks, including hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, and fire, across the U.S.
• Tanimura & Antle (Salinas, CA): Audit Committee Chair and Nominating and Governance Committee Member. Tanimura & Antle is a large, private, family-owned California agricultural food grower.

Prior Board Experience:

• Lantronix, Inc. (Irvine, CA): Board Director and Audit Committee Member
• National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD), Northern California: Board Director, Board Vice Chairman
• Balco Holdings (restructured and dissolved 2023)  Owner of Bay Alarm, Bay Alarm Medical and BALCO Properties (Concord, CA): Finance Committee Chair and Interim CEO
• Recology (San Francisco, CA): Board Chair, Audit Committee Chair, Compensation Committee Chair, and Special Investigations Committee Chair
• Brainchip Holdings (ASX: BRN) (Australia/California): Board Director, Audit Committee Chair, Renumeration Committee Member
• OFG Bancorp (NYSE: OFG) (Puerto Rico/U.S. Virgin Islands): Board Director and Audit Committee Member
• Sasser Family Holdings (Chicago, IL): Board Director and Finance Committee Chair
• FIG Partners sold 2019 (Atlanta, GA): Board Director
• Mechanics Bank (OTC) sold 2015 (San Francisco Bay Area): Inside Director and President and CEO